Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings

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Things are looking pretty bright for the Dark Ages.

By IGN Staff

E3 Update

Microsoft is quite proud of Age of Empires II and for good reason. I was not a big fan of the first one because to me it was too much like Warcraft II, but I'm very interested in getting a hold of this one after getting a quick run through some of the major new improvements.

For starters, the game has a much sounder economic base. The idea of resources has been expanded, including mobile resources like sheep. Furthermore, trade routes have been implemented, letting you caravan across the map for profits, and a new building allows the buying and selling of resources on the open market, giving you additional options for making a profit. The resources you buy and sell however, don't actually move across the map as real units, presumably for game balancing reasons.

Other annoyances, like units being unable to walk through fields or disappearing behind terrain features have been corrected. In fact, the whole AI has been ripped out and done anew.

Speaking of AI, another new feature will be of special interest to serious emperors is a new option. According to Microsoft, gamers will be able to edit the various AI scripts that dictate how the computer players play, and these files can be traded around the fan community, creating plenty of new ways to play.

Pathfinding looks a lot better as does the combat AI, the most significant improvement in the latter department being the introduction of formations. Using formations is pretty easy--group the desired units, then click on a button to assign them to a wedge or square, for example. Weak, slow units like spellcasters and treasure wagons naturally group themselves into the middle of the formation. Likewise archers automatically take up the last rank, while the toughest, fastest units, like cavalry, line up in front.

The formations break up a bit when the troops walk through some rough terrain, like hills, but this is natural, since it happens in the real world too. Another nice touch is that when a square formation is forced to march a long distance, they naturally switch to a marching column, then reform as a square when they arrive.

If your town falls under attack, there's a bell icon that you can hit. This causes a bell to ring and all of your workers and specialists run for the safety of the town hall, where they act as weak defenders. If you survive the siege, you can ring the bell again and the workers return to the tasks they were performing before war was declared. You can also put archers into guard towers which makes a lot of sense, as they're better protected and augment the tower's defenses.

Finally the AI players themselves are also a lot better, as they'll offer to surrender and give you all their resources if you're really pounding them--so no more hunting around the map for some computer player's last peasant. The different units and leaders of each culture actually speak and sound like natives of their respective culture--Japanese, French, and so on.

The only downer seems to be that this is Microsoft's only strategy game at the show, since they no longer have the Close Combat franchise. Let's hope Microsoft doesn't give up on the genre altogether--they're a huge, well-funded publisher who backs lots of good PC game projects that other companies might consider a bit risky (Asheron's Call, Fighter Ace). And we strategy gamers need all the good games we can get.

--Jason Bates

03/24/1999

Age of Kings is the second installment in the Age of Empires series, a projected four game series following the history of mankind. It picks up where the expansion pack The Rise of Rome leaves off and continues well into the late Middle Ages, covering the period from about 450 to 1450. Although it is meant as a sequel to Age of Empires, the two games will not be linked together in any way.

A lot's been added here. The economic side of the game has received a lot of development. It's no longer about hoarding money only to spend it on troops. The Units are all also new as are the available controls. When the game is finally released, we may also see a more flexible and intelligent AI. Age of Kings also promises the added convenience of customizable hot-keys, improved navigation points and production queues. There will also be female peasants. PC doesn't just stand for personal computer, baby.

You are put at the head of one of thirteen civilizations: Britons, Byzantines, Celts, Chinese, Franks, Goths, Japanese, Mongols, Persians, Saracens, Teutons, Turks and Vikings. Each civilization will have unique strengths and weaknesses as well as some unique units. There will also be a unique wonder each civilization can produce.

The resources are similar to those in AoE. Wood is still cut from forests. Ore and stone are still mined. Food is still used for the same purpose but is more complicated to obtain. There will now be specific arable plots set aside for farming. Farming on any other type of land is not permitted. The one resource that has changed the most is gold. It's no longer simply produced by mining. It is now also a product of your economy as a whole.

The economic model in this game has undergone a radical restructuring. Trade is now just as important a factor as military strength in determining who rules the world. In AoE all you could do with money was buy units and buildings. Now you can use it indirectly against your enemy's economy. There is in Age of Kings a shared global market, with fluctuating prices and supply and demand. Let's say your enemies, the evil Franks, have nearly deforested their area. If you have any extra cash, use it to buy up the global supply of lumber. This will force prices up for poor Frank. Soon he will not be able to afford to buy much lumber at all. On the other hand, if he's selling, you want to sell too in order to drive buying prices down.

You may also use trade in a more direct manner. Trade routes across the water were a part of the old game. Now you can trade overland as well. Your caravans make easy targets for bandits so you'll want to send a military escort to accompany them. You trade in virtual goods. The farther away the two cities are, the greater the trade bonus. You may also shut off trade with an enemy. This tends to stifle their economy somewhat. You can also exact tribute from your allies.

Age of Kings should allow you to play an almost entirely economic game. But who wants that, right? Let's get to the good stuff...

There will be 64 units to choose from in the game. There are the traditional categories of infantry, cavalry and ranged troops. In addition to these there will be a few more types of units. The siege weapons, including ballistas, bombards, and the dreaded trebuchet, will be expensive, cumbersome weapons that are best used against an enemy's castle. Each civilization will also get a gunpowder unit late in the game.

In addition to these more mundane units, you'll get a few extra. The Monk replaces the Priest from AoE. Monks may heal friendly units and convert enemy units. These abilities alone would be enough to make a Monk worth his weight in gold, but they have an even more important role. Monks are the only units that can handle and transport Relics. Relics are special, one-of-a-kind items hidden throughout the game. They take the place of artifacts in Age of Empires. If placed in your church, it will bring in cash revenue in the form of pilgrims and offerings. If you can hold all the relics for a specified length of time, you may win the game.

In addition to Monks, each civilization gets one unique super-unit. These represent the height of that civilization's power. The Japanese Samurai is one of the deadliest units in the game. He has a fair range attack and an atrociously high combat skill. The Tueton Knight is one of the few infantry units that could stand up to him. English Longbowmen are swift and deadly and excel at killing things from very far away. The Janissaries of the Turks are fanatical Islamic soldiers.

As if that wasn't enough, you also will have the chance to play Heroes. Each campaign is loosely based on the life of historical figures. These are incorporated into the scenarios at particular times. Their stories will be part of the story of the campaigns. You will get to control Joan of Arc and William Wallace. The game will also feature the chance to control Richard the Lion Hearted and Genghis Khan. The addition of the Heroes is meant to give more of a narrative feeling to the whole campaign. It will need to work to bring unity to a thousand year long campaign series.

Each unit can receive the same commands as in AoE. When guarding, however, you can now choose a facing for the unit. "Guard here, and look that way," you say. Units can be set to patrol a given area or path or be set to follow a designated leader unit. Units can now also garrison inside certain structures as a means of defense. There's also a Town Bell feature that you can use to aid in the defense of your city. The town bell garrisons all peasants. This keeps them safe while your soldiers fight off the enemy.

The addition of assembly areas will make logistics a little smoother. You can set a gather point for all units created by a structure. This keeps things orderly. All your newly produced soldiers will group together at the assembly points. If you set an assembly point on a resource, all new peasants will begin harvesting there. There is also an improved waypoint system in the game that should ease the woes of maneuver.

Units are also ordered in formations now. Band a group of units-or separate units-and they can form up either in column, line, wedge or square. Unfortunately, the computer decides how they are positioned for you. There are no plans to allow combat modifiers for rear and flank attacks. Formations are always tricky things to move around so we'll have to see how that goes. I do know that if you move the formation too far, it will form a column and only regain formation when it reaches its destination. This tends to make the group more cohesive.

A new stance has been added as well. Aggressive and Passive function much as they did in AoE. While in Defensive stance, a unit will automatically attack any enemy unit that moves in range, but will not give pursuit beyond a certain specified range. Units set on defensive will also now retreat in the face of an overwhelming attack. Not very good guards, after all.

That's not the only improvement in the AI however. The AI is supposed to play the game based on what it learns about its environment. It explores the map the way a human player would. Saves the game, immediately sends units to all the edges, then reloads the game, right? Actually the AI in this game is never supposed to cheat. It has to follow the same rule that a human player would. The only imbalance comes at higher difficulty levels when the computer player receives more initial resources.

The designers set up AI script battles to see how they played against each other. Much more is being done in this area and a number of AI scripts should ship with the game. There's even a customizable AI where you can set priorities and paths for the computer to follow. The AI for Age of Kings should also be able to throw in the towel as well. An AI that knows when to surrender is okay in my book.

I never get too excited by buildings because...well, they're just buildings. There are a few things to note here however. Gatehouses can hold ten units. The player who owns it can open and close the gate at will. Be warned, however, as the closing of the gate is very dangerous. Ever shut your hand in the trunk? You get the idea. You will be able to construct wooden walls right away. This will deter very early blitz tactics against rival civilizations. Buildings are also built to scale in Age of Kings and are unit transparent. Any time a unit walks behind a building, you will see an outline of that unit's position.

Age of Kings boasts a technology tree with over a hundred nodes. That's supposed to be more than you could cover in a game, which adds to the replay value. Technology is divided into two broad areas. Economic sciences apply to farming and crafts. Go this route if you want to beat your opponent in the market place. Or, if subtlety isn't your thing, pour all your efforts into researching new ships and weapons of war. Representative technologies include Conscription and the Blast Furnace. The former increases the speed with which you build units. The latter gives your troops a hand-to-hand damage bonus. To focus more on peace, go with the Looms advance. This strengthens the defensive qualities of your villagers.

The maps in Age of Kings will be very large-approximately three times larger than the huge maps in Age of Empires. To help cope with this size, there will be several map shortcuts such as assemble points. You can also set waypoints for your units. There will also be audio cues, delivered in the dialect of your civilization, to clue you in to happenings elsewhere. The terrain itself is much more realistic. To help you keep track of your empire there will be four map modes, normal, battle, trade and resource. From the map view you will also see a constant indicator of your total population and your population capacity. No more clicking on houses.

The multi-player element is still here. Games run through the Zone with up to 8 competitors at a time. There are traditional Deathmatch games as well as the very intriguing Regicide. In Regicide, each player gets a king unit. A player is eliminated when his king unit is destroyed. Those of you with poor connections will be happy that you have a multi-player save and restart feature. You can also use the campaign editor in the game to form your own scenarios and link them in to larger campaign.

Age of Kings has the potential to be a great game. It looks like a lot of work has gone into it and there's still plenty of time for tweaking before release. My big concern is that the addition of so many new features will bog the player down in administrative type tasks. Fortunately, Bruce Shelley seems to be able to design games with multiple layers of nuance while still keeping things pretty straightforward. Check back here for further updates.